An Awfully Big Adventure
by 8ADW01F
Summary: After a recent tragedy, Amelia suddenly finds herself onboard a plane to London in order to live with her uncle. It is there that she discovers an incredibly old diary in the attic, by which it's content inspires a whole range of questions and mysteries. But it's not just the diary that captures the dear heart of Amelia. Something else is lurking in the dark...and it wants Amelia.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Okay so I recently watched the 2003 Peter Pan again and oh man I forgot how much I love that movie. It's one of my absolute favs! But inspiration has struck me and I'm back to my first love - the one and only Peter Pan. I have probably watched and read everything and anything I could Peter Pan related, so this is probably going to be a combination of a few medias, not just the 2003 movie. Actually it's more so going to be connected to the SyFy series Neverland more than anything as I wanted to take a new and modern approach to the classic tale and I liked the element of the orb and the origin story (even though it completely strayed from the book). So I hope you enjoy, I just want to forewarn everyone that it might take few chapters before we get to see the boy who won't grow up and Neverland but be patient because we will get there! Happy reading xx**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or rights to Peter Pan. The only thing that's all me are my OC's. Btw the very first poem mentioned is written by Reshma Ramesh, her poetry is absolutely beautiful definitely take a look at her work. Alright now onto the story...**

I couldn't quite pinpoint what I was feeling as I was staring out the window watching the clouds drift on by. For so long I had wanted to go to London, yearned it actually. It seemed like such a dream come true, a place where there's a story behind every face, every picture and every building. An abundance of raw history just waiting to be discovered. I could just get lost in the adventures of rulers and peasants, Earls and aristocrats, knights and their shining armour. There really was just too much to look forward to. But what was once a dream was now nothing but a tarnished reality. For so long I had yearned to take the journey I was embarking on, but now all I wanted was the chance to trade it all for a way to erase the last two weeks of my life. If only time travel were possible...

"To Yesterday I bade goodbye

We departed with tears in our eyes

But she with a sorrowful face

Loved me dearly for all my grace

Followed me everywhere relentlessly

Reminding me of our love graciously."

I whispered numbly, still staring at those illusive clouds.

"That's beautiful. Where's it from?"

I startled slightly, not realising that the lady next to me had heard. I turned my head away from the window to have a look at her properly. I didn't so much glance at her originally when she sat down next to me. My head was too preoccupied with a million thoughts running through it. She looked like a friendly woman, someone you could easily talk to. But I was in no mood for talking, however that didn't deem that I could be rude either.

"Um. I don't know. I just heard it from someone." My mother actually, but I definitely was in no way going to mention that.

She gave a soft smile and tilted her head at me inquisitively.

"Oh. You've never been curious enough to find out?" She asked conversationally. I shook my head in response and turned back to the view out the window, hoping that it would end the small talk, but I was in no such luck.

"I've always loved the sound of poetry. Could never really understand half of it most of the time, but all the same it's beautiful. Even when you don't understand it you can still _feel_ it. You can feel what they're saying. That's what I love about it." She remarked dreamily. I glanced briefly back at her, noticing the content smile on her face but then looked away immediately as soon as I caught her staring directly at me. She let out an intrigued hum and leaned forward almost mischievously, a certain twinkle in her eye.

"You know it's so rare to find kids your age memorising poetry. They're all so sucked into their phones these days. For which I cannot judge, our lives are practically all in our phones. It's no wonder most of us can't live without them. But I must say it is refreshing to find someone looking out of a window daydreaming, reciting poetry. It reminds me of myself in my younger days. My head was always so in the clouds...still is sometimes - or at least my friends frequently like to tell me so." She confessed light-heartedly.

Despite the numbness I felt, I couldn't help but find myself drawn to the voice of this stranger. She had such a way with words. The warmth of her voice brought a certain comfort that felt as if it could melt away any sorrows or heartache entrenched within the soul. I was never able to meet either of my grandmothers, but I could easily imagine one of them to look and sound exactly like this woman in front of me. She had quite a magnificent charm about her.

"I wasn't really daydreaming. More just like thinking...about things." I clarified, still looking out the window.

"I see. And how much are these thoughts of yours?" She asked. I frowned in confusion at the way of her wording.

"Sorry what?" I questioned bemusedly, turning to face her for an answer.

"A penny or two? Perhaps even more?" She continued with a quirk on her lips. It took me a few seconds to understand but I finally got it.

"Oh. Um. Just a few things that's happened recently that's on my mind. I'd rather not talk about it, or really _think_ about it honestly but that's something I can't really help at the moment." I said vaguely, not really wanting to talk about anything personal to a complete stranger. She may seem like a nice old lady but I hardly knew her. There was no reason to talk about something that I wasn't ready to talk about anyway.

Her eyes softened in understanding and she gave a nod of her head to signify that she wouldn't talk of it further.

"Oh of course! I'm sorry, I can be a bit nosy sometimes. Don't mind me. Oh I don't even think I told you my name! I'm always doing that. Such a forgetful thing. I'm Jane." She introduced, pausing at the end in hopes to get my name as well.

"I'm Amelia. But most call me Lia." I replied in kind.

"What a lovely name! Pleasure to meet you Amelia." Jane expressed warmly, holding out her hand. I took it and shook it gently but found it a bit awkward as I didn't really shake hands often with people.

"Likewise. So I'm guessing this isn't your first time coming to London?" I asked, taking note of her accent. I decided to be polite since it seemed impossible to stop Jane from talking my ear off. I might as well go with the flow, plus it helped that she was a welcomed distraction from everything.

"What gave it away?" She said with a cheeky wink. "I have family in London and haven't seen them for over a year. I just got a call from my grandson a few weeks ago and he said that he is getting married! Oh you should've seen me! I was up on my toes dancing up and down in excitement. He's the first of the grandchildren to get engaged you know. It's marvellous!"

I smiled, her excitement too contagious.

"That's wonderful! When's the wedding?"

"Oh not for another six months, but I'd like to spend as much time as I can with everyone before the wedding. It's hard moving away from family. As much as I love Australia, I'm not sure that I'm going to return until a little while. What about you? What brings you to London? Looking to do some sightseeing? A little bit of holidaying?"

The smile slowly fell off my face at the question, a reminder of my situation. I fidgeted in my seat slightly uncomfortable all of a sudden.

"I wish. Uh. No. A-actually I'm moving in with my uncle...who I never actually met before until just recently at- at the- um never mind. Anyway he has this house in London somewhere, I think it's near Kensington gardens actually. So yeah, new house, new school, new country, new _everything_. It's kinda a bit..." I trailed off, closing my eyes and taking a breath in.

"Daunting?" Jane filled in for me.

"Yeah." I breathed out, reopening my eyes again. "It's funny, I've always dreamed to go to London. It's always fascinated me because of all the history and everything. There's just something so romantic about it. I would dream as a little girl that I would be looking out a window to the night sky, with the stars shimmering like diamonds. The cityscape would be illuminated in gold and the buildings silhouetted in dark blue as the Big Ben chimed at midnight. I was completely and utterly obsessed with fairytales but Peter Pan was always the one that stood out most of all. I wanted to be kidnapped by this mischievous, adventure-hungry boy who would take me to a place where I never would have to grow up or have responsibilities. I could fly, fight pirates, swim with mermaids - the possibilities were endless! And perhaps I thought going to London would take me on this marvellous adventure I've always wanted." I reminisced, taken over by my dreams as a child.

"Maybe it will. Who's to say that it won't?" Jane inspired with her comforting grin.

"Well. Reality for one." I deadpanned, sobering up from my dreaming. "As much as I would like to be taken away to Neverland, I'm old enough to know that'll never happen. I've been dreaming for long enough and it's time for me to wake up now." I answered seriously, crawling back into myself and turning back towards the window.

Jane looked on in sympathy, remorseful that such a beautiful girl has had to grow up so quickly already. She paused thoughtfully to find something appropriate to say, when finally it came to her.

"Hold fast to dreams

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird

That cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams

For when dreams go

Life is a barren field

Frozen with snow." She finished off softly. Jane waited patiently as I slowly turned back around to take in what she had just said. I swallowed steadily before opening my mouth.

"W-who was that?" I asked timidly.

"Langston Hughes. He couldn't be more true, you know. Always remember that dreams are the basis of life- without them, there is no true happiness. Hold fast to your dreams Amelia, no matter how hard they may seem to hold on to because in the end every single one of them counts. Don't let yourself forget that." Jane advised with absolute sincerity.

A feeling I hadn't felt in a long while grew within my chest. It sparked with a warmth that eased the ache that wearied deep within my heart. The corners of my mouth tipped up slightly. My sorrow was still weighed down in my bones, but the numbness encased around my heart had dissipated into the air.

"I won't. I promise."

 **AN: Thanks for reading! Please leave a review if you can. They make a very happy author and very happy authors love to write! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Alright so here's another update! Thanks for the lovely reviews for the first chapter. They really motivated me to keep writing and writing. Shout out to JuggernautJJ for being the first reviewer! And it was such a lovely review as well that gave me lots of inspiration and a great muse - the secret garden. Such a great book choice and it really relates to what I've got planned for this story so I really feel that you understand what I want to achieve here with it. So thank you for your input and compliments, it really made me smile :) Anyway this chapter may be a bit boring but again it's more of a setup and filler and a way to get the feel of the characters a bit better. I'm trying to get a good build and pace so that I don't rush it.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy xx**

It was an awfully awkward and slow ride to my uncle's house. Uncle Jack tried hopelessly to start up many conversations in the car but constantly found himself troubled over what to say. My silence definitely wasn't helping but I had no energy to talk. I was both jet lagged and completely exhausted from the trying two weeks I just went through - you would think he would've considered all this in the first place, but no. Thankfully, he gave up about halfway through the trip when he realised that I wouldn't give anymore than a one worded answer or just a plain blank stare. So instead, he decided to give up on his pursuits and just turn on the radio in defeat. Uncle Jack obviously wasn't a big fan of silence, but I didn't care too much about that. At least the radio didn't ask me silly random questions. What was my favourite colour? _Seriously?_

I leant my head against the car window and snuggled up against the door closing my eyes in hope to get some sleep. Perhaps it would make the ride go quicker. Oh how I wished it would. I let out a breath of relief at the chance to finally get some rest, pressing my face further into the cool glass for comfort. My shoulders relaxed and my mind was finally able to quieten enough to drift off into the realms of sleep - the surrounding whoosh of passing cars faded away, the Coldplay song on the radio was sinking as if it was drifting underwater and...the engine stopped. I jerked awake at the lack of sound and motion. My eyes blinked several times to clear away the blurriness of sleep, adjusting to the light and the new surroundings. Had we arrived already? I swore I only shut my eyes for a second. Well it sure only _felt_ like a second-

"Okay kiddo. Here we are...home." My Uncle announced with a soft smile. He quickly unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door to hop out of the car. I sat still for a moment as I focused on what he just said.

Home.

Was this really going to be _home_? Here in London with Uncle Jack?

No. Never.

I was resolved in my thoughts as I undid my seatbelt and climbed out of the car.

No. This new place would never be called home. It's just a house. Home was the smell of mum's beef casserole. It was the warmth of her freshly brewed tea, the comfort of her spontaneous hugs. It was the sound of her soothing voice and the sound of her scolding me after I did not put the dishes away. Home was the love that was always there, but now it was gone...

And it was never coming back.

I slammed the door shut, discreetly wiping away at my eyes as I turned around to help Uncle Jack with my bags.

"Alright is that everything?" He asked as he pulled out my two suitcases out from the boot of the car. I nodded my head and held onto the strap of my laptop bag which hung over my shoulder. I stood awkwardly onto the side, staring at nothing in particular.

"Okay then, let's head in shall we?" Uncle Jack suggested, shutting the boot and locking the car with a click of a button. He led the way with both suitcases in hand, pausing when he got to the door that led into the front yard so that he could get his keys out. He fiddled with them for a little bit until eventually he found the right one to open the door. Once he finally got it opened, he moved to the side and gestured with his hands towards the entrance.

"Ladies first." He spoke in an gentlemanly manner. I gave a weak smile in a sign of acknowledgement and headed on through, Uncle Jack trailing not too far behind me. I stopped about halfway to the house, pausing a moment to admire the outside of it. I was not able to see it from the car as it was hidden from view due to the brick wall that blocked it from the street side. It was quite lovely and...big, very big actually. It wasn't anything outrageous but still quite a lot bigger than what I was used to. It did have a certain charm or something other about it; light brown bricks with white trimmed windows that took over the whole house, and a striking yet fitting bright yellow door that was centred right in the middle of an archway. Overall I didn't hate it, and that was a better start than anything else.

"Enjoying the view?"

I turned back around at the voice of my uncle, nodding my head again in reply then began staring off at the garden around me. It was quite a pretty garden, had a sort whimsical feel to it. And although it was slightly overgrown and looked as if most of the plants were wild flora it suited the rest of the house perfectly. If I weren't so tired I would've come to appreciate the tranquility and beauty of it a lot more, but unfortunately most of my thoughts were reserved for finding a bed to sleep on.

Uncle Jack sighed and shook his head, moving on ahead of me to open the front door. I knew he was becoming quite irked at my resolved silence but strangely I found a bit of satisfaction in his annoyance. It was childish, I know, but there was something ever so amusing about pushing one's buttons and I had no fear in doing so. It was one of the only things I could actually have control over.

Soon enough I found myself in the house, staring up at the daunting staircase before me. I dearly hoped that my bedroom would not be up there for I would be more than likely to trip and fall from sheer exhaustion. I was clumsy enough as it was, there was no need to add stairs and jet lag to the mix.

"Uncle Jack. Can I go to bed? I'm _so_ tired." Just to show I wasn't lying I literally dropped down right to the ground in exhaustion while my eyes decided to droop drown half-lidded.

"Ah so she speaks!" Uncle Jack jested light-heartedly. I turned my head around to look at him directly, giving an unamused glare but I don't think he found it very intimidating seeing as he towered over me while I slumped on the floor.

"Oh blimey you weren't kidding. Those are some serious bags right there." He pointed out as he stared down at what I guess were bloodshot eyes and disheveled hair. I must've looked quite the sight - a twenty-three hour flight will do that to anybody.

"I guess the full tour can wait. I'll let you get some sleep before dinner. Your bedroom's this way, come on, up and at 'em." He commanded offering a hand to help me get up from the floor.

Unfortunately because of my great luck, my bedroom was of course upstairs. I was lucky enough however to not have to carry anything up for Uncle Jack had already offered to take my luggage to my bedroom. I was in no way going to waste such a gracious offer, might as well put it all to good use while I could.

I didn't really observe much as I walked upstairs and across to my room, too determined to get some much needed sleep. Eventually I made it there, miraculously with no tripping or injuries. This was quite an achievement seeing as I was literally a walking zombie with a historical record of being a grade A klutz. I almost cried when I saw the bed, sitting there in its luxurious covers, pillows looking as soft as a feather. I dropped my laptop bag to the ground and pretty much belly flopped onto the queen mattress, bouncing up and down slightly from the springs within the bed. My eyes closed in bliss at the comfort of the fleece cotton quilt against my face, and I let out a deep sigh as my body fully relaxed.

Uncle Jack chuckled at the sight of me flopping onto the bed like a little kid, shaking his head as he placed both my bags aside near the door.

"I'll come and wake you in a few hours when dinner's ready. Does pizza sound good to you?" He said before he departed. I lifted my arm in a thumbs up, not even bothered to move my position on the bed nor say a word. He laughed again awkwardly, not sure how to respond to my laziness.

"Okay then. Sweet dreams."

I sighed in contentment once the door finally closed and snuggled deeper into the pillows, not even bothering to go under the covers. It only took a few seconds until I felt the familiar foggy sensation of the world around me slipping further and further away and then just like that- the world went dark.

 **AN: Don't forget to review on what you think! I'd love to hear all your feedback :) Ciao xx**


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